Table of Contents

1. Introduction: the meaning of Murambi; Part I. Creating What You Are Afraid Of: The Rwandan Patriotic Front's Transitional Justice Program: 2. Rewriting history in post-genocide Rwanda; 3. Symbolic struggles; 4. Justice as memory; 5. From violent repression to political domination: transitional justice, political reform and development; Part II. Popular Narratives: 6. Political reform in three Rwandan communities; 7. Popular narratives of memory and history; 8. Politics by other means: popular opinion about 'transitional justice'; 9. Conclusion: 'we pretend to live together': assessing the impact of transitional justice mechanisms in Rwanda.

Promotional Information

A critical exploration of the steps taken to promote peace, reconciliation and justice in post-genocide Rwanda.

About the Author

Timothy Longman is Director of the African Studies Center and Associate Professor of Political Science and International Relations at Boston University. He has previously held teaching and research positions at Vassar College, New York, the University of California, Berkeley, the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and the National University of Rwanda. He has conducted over twenty years of research in Rwanda and is the author of Christianity and Genocide in Rwanda (Cambridge, 2010).

Reviews

'Timothy Longman is one of the few contemporary scholars to have conducted research in Rwanda before and after the genocide in 1994. In this accessible and much-needed book, Longman documents how post-genocide ruling elites have instrumentalized memory and justice in the aftermath of genocide, distorting events, silencing alternative accounts, and crafting a historical narrative that serves the interests of those in power. Longman complements his national-level analysis with powerful and nuanced community-based and individual accounts of life since the genocide. The book is a sobering, well-informed account that raises profound questions about the post-genocide model in Rwanda. Anyone interested in understanding contemporary Rwanda and politics after genocide more generally would do well to read this book.' Scott Straus, University of Wisconsin, Madison

'Memory and Justice in Post-Genocide Rwanda is a compelling and provocative critique of the Rwandan Patriotic Front's claim that it has used trials, re-education camps, curricular reform, and public memorials and commemorations solely to reunify a deeply divided nation. If you want to understand the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide without putting on rose-tinted glasses - and even if you don't - you should read this book.' Eric Stover, University of California, Berkeley

'A critically rich and interwoven text, reflecting the complexity of lived experiences in the wake of conflict and violence.' Andra le Roux-Kemp , Africa Today